Funding the Future

The wealthy aren't like us

The wealthy do – as author F. Scott Fitzgerald noted a century ago - think they’re different to us. The recent farmers’ protests proved that. Despite their wealth, farmers claimed impoverishment and demanded favours and subsidies from the state. It’s time we stopped putting up with their egocentric bleating. 

What do 678,000 people do in the City?

The City of London claims it is the powerhouse of the UK economy. Rachel Reeves has called it our ‘Jewel in the Crown’. But actually, it’s much more like a parasite, extracting value from the rest of the economy to for the advantage of a few at cost to most in this country.

The UK’s national debt fell by £1.5 trillion this week

The government’s own accounts, just released, show that its total liabilities owing fell between 2022 and 2023 by £1.5 trillion. They’re now much smaller than the figure the government claims the national debt to be. The whole claim that we’re supposedly burdened by debt is now complete nonsense. When will they admit it?

Trump has declared trade war

Trump’s trade wars are going to hike inflation and interest rates in the US and around the world, and won’t boost jobs in the US, or make middle or working class Americans better off. The price of his mayhem is going to be enormous.

Why should everyone either ‘earn or learn’?

Labour has come up with a new soundbite slogan. It’s that everyone should have the chance to ‘earn or learn’. What about pensioners, carers, those too sick to work, those for whom there is no work and those with disabilities that prevent them working? It seems that Labour just does not care about them.

Does Trump understand government?

Trump’s new government looks as though it is going to be made up almost entirely of people who have no clue about what government is but think it can be run like a business. The trouble is, the two are nothing like each other and as a result things could go horribly wrong, very quickly, for the Trump administration.

Where did the climate consensus go?

Climate change is the biggest challenge we have. It’s bigger than. Any war we’ve ever fought. It’s bigger than any political crisis we’ve ever had. That’s because it’s existential. And now the Tories are in denial about it and are withdrawing their support from government policy on the issue. Wy? What are they playing at?

Why do Labour believe in private equity?

The logic of private equity capitalists is contrary to everything that it seems sound government, good governance, sensible pension fund planning and long term thinking should stand for. So why is Labour besotted with it?

Will your pension provide for your old age?

Pension saving is not just about how much money you put aside, but also about what that money is used to fund. If your pension fund is investing in things like oil, ultra-processed foods and properties liable to flooding then those things are going to be worthless when you want your money back. Far too few people understand that – and this is the real pension crisis that we face.

We need the nanny state

We can only beat obesity if the state acts in ways the far-right calls the ‘nanny state’